"And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us." 1 John 3:24

The seventh and final truth about genuine believers is that they have the gift of the Holy Spirit! Dr. R. A. Torrey said, "The Holy Spirit is the blood-bought birthright of every believer in Jesus Christ." He’s right! In this message we are going to study the Holy Spirit.

• The Holy Spirit In The Old Testament

The ministry of the Holy Spirit differs in the Old Testament and in the New Testament. In Old Testament times the Holy Spirit "came upon" some Old Testament believers. Here are some examples –

Othniel - "And when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. 10 And the spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel, and went out to war: and the LORD delivered Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushanrishathaim." Judges 3:9-10

Gideon - "But the spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered after him." Judges 6:34

Saul –When Saul is chosen to be king of Israel, the Spirit of the Lord came on him and he prophesies (1 Samuel 10:10), and the same Spirit comes on him to give victory in battle (1 Samuel 11:6-7). But, he did not maintain his obedience to God and the Spirit of God left him (1 Samuel 16.14).

David - "Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah." 1 Samuel 16:13. It is important to note that David begged the Lord not to remove His Spirit from Him. We see this in Psalms 51:11 "Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me."

A careful study of the work of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament makes it obvious that the Holy Spirit did not come upon all Old Testament believers. Sometimes the Holy Spirit came upon people temporarily. Sometimes His coming was more permanent, depending on necessity, and it is always at God’s initiative.

• The Holy Spirit In The New Testament

The Indwelling of The Holy Spirit

I will begin by defining the "indwelling" of the Holy Spirit. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the truth that the Holy Spirits comes to live within the all those who receive Jesus Christ as their Savior.

Our Lord Jesus Christ promised that the Holy Spirit would come to be with believers and in believers when He returned to His Father. We read about this in John 14:16-17 "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you."

Now, let’s turn back to our text -- 1 John 3:24b "And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us."

At the moment of Salvation, God sends the Holy Spirit into the believer’s heart to indwell him. Galatians 4:6 says, "And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father." 1 Corinthians 3:16 says, "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?"

Turn with me to Romans 8:9-11 "But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. 10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you."

Next, turn to Ephesians 1:13-14 "In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed [preserved or made secure] with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the earnest [security given in advance] of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory."

The great blessing of our age is that the Holy Spirit indwells ALL people to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ permanently. It is the Holy Spirit that makes us spiritually alive. It is the Holy Spirit that ensures that we will be Raptures and receive our glorified immortal bodies when our Lord returns for us. Praise God for the gift of the Holy Spirit. As Paul wrote to the Colossians "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:" Colossians 1:27

The Baptism of The Holy Spirit

The baptizing work of the Holy Spirit may be defined as that work whereby the Spirit of God places the believer into union with Christ and into union with other believers in the Body of Christ at the moment of Salvation. First, It was promised by John the Baptist and Jesus Christ (Matthew 3:11; Acts 1:4-5). Second, it was fulfilled at Pentecost and at Cornelius's house (Acts 2:1-13; Acts 11:13-17). The baptism at Pentecost was for the Jews, and the one at Cornelius's house was for the Gentiles. Third, Christians are never told to seek the baptism of the Spirit. After Pentecost there is no record of Christians waiting for this baptism. All believers received Holy Spirit Baptism immediately upon Salvation. Turn to 1 Corinthians 12:12-13 "For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit."

In conclusion, the Baptism of the Holy Spirit does two things -- First, it joins us to the Body of Christ, and second, it actualizes our co-crucifixion with Christ.  Being in His body means we are risen with Him to newness of life (Romans 6:4). Being associated with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection establishes the basis for realizing our separation from the power of indwelling sin and our walk in newness of life (Romans 6:1-10, Colossians 2:12).

The Christian is wonderfully blessed in that we have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit. He indwells us and He has baptized us into the Body of Christ.